SUMMARY

SUMMARY

IDENTIFICATION

SCIENTIFIC NAME(s)

Gadus morhua

SPECIES NAME(s)

Atlantic cod

Cod on the entire Georges Bank is thought to be a single biological stock. On the Eastern Georges Bank, both Canada and the US have jurisdiction on either side of the Hague line, and collaborate in conducting an assessment of cod in this area, and in allocating catch shares. The US also conducts an overall assessment for the entire Georges Bank.

ANALYSIS

Strengths

A new management system has been undertaken to reduce fishing mortality and increase the probability of rebuilding. Catches and fishing mortality have responded with a lowering of both over the last few years

Weaknesses

This stock is in a state of depletion. Current estimates place it at only 10% of its SSBMSY levels and slightly larger then 5% of carrying capacity. Understandably stock recruitment is also well below average and will continue to be so unless the current trend is reversed.
Fishery has some impacts to PET species and habitat structure, but managers from both countries have recently implemented measures to reduce these interactions. The results of these actions are unknown at this point.

FISHSOURCE SCORES

Management Quality:

Management Strategy:

0.4

Managers Compliance:

10

Fishers Compliance:

10

Stock Health:

Current Health:

0.8

Future Health:

2.4

RECOMMENDATIONS

CATCHERS & REGULATORS

1. Support maintenance of existing closed areas to cod harvest as a tool to help rebuilding, including when decisions are expected at the US New England Fishery Management Council meetings.
2. If closed areas are opened, limit fishing to exempted gear types and require 100% observer coverage.
3. Conduct stock structure and population dynamic research to ensure stock boundaries between this stock and the Gulf of Maine stock are appropriate.

RETAILERS & SUPPLY CHAIN

1. Companies sourcing from the stock should communicate their support for maintaining closed areas to national and regional administrations.
2. Companies not currently sourcing from this fishery should avoid doing so until sufficient recovery is seen in the stock. Companies should however encourage regulators to maintain existing closed areas.

FIPS

No related FIPs

CERTIFICATIONS

No related MSC fisheries

Fisheries

Within FishSource, the term "fishery" is used to indicate each unique combination of a flag country with a fishing gear, operating within a particular management unit, upon a resource. That resource may have a known biological stock structure and/or may be assessed at another level for practical or jurisdictional reasons. A fishery is the finest scale of resolution captured in FishSource profiles, as it is generally the scale at which sustainability can most fairly and practically be evaluated.

Analysis

OVERVIEW

Last updated on 6 August 2014

Strengths

A new management system has been undertaken to reduce fishing mortality and increase the probability of rebuilding. Catches and fishing mortality have responded with a lowering of both over the last few years

Weaknesses

This stock is in a state of depletion. Current estimates place it at only 10% of its SSBMSY levels and slightly larger then 5% of carrying capacity. Understandably stock recruitment is also well below average and will continue to be so unless the current trend is reversed.
Fishery has some impacts to PET species and habitat structure, but managers from both countries have recently implemented measures to reduce these interactions. The results of these actions are unknown at this point.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Last updated on 28 June 2016

Improvement Recommendations to Catchers & Regulators

1. Support maintenance of existing closed areas to cod harvest as a tool to help rebuilding, including when decisions are expected at the US New England Fishery Management Council meetings.
2. If closed areas are opened, limit fishing to exempted gear types and require 100% observer coverage.
3. Conduct stock structure and population dynamic research to ensure stock boundaries between this stock and the Gulf of Maine stock are appropriate.

Recommendations to Retailers & Supply Chain

1. Companies sourcing from the stock should communicate their support for maintaining closed areas to national and regional administrations.
2. Companies not currently sourcing from this fishery should avoid doing so until sufficient recovery is seen in the stock. Companies should however encourage regulators to maintain existing closed areas.

1.STOCK STATUS

STOCK ASSESSMENT

Last updated on 5 August 2014

An assessment is conducted by US scientists for the total stock and a separate Canadian assessment concerns the eastern portion of the stock. Currently the model is a forward projection statistical catch at age approach. Model suffers from a large retrospective bias that estimates a lower fishing mortality and higher SSB in the terminal year then likely (NEFSC, 2013).

Current F and SSB are adjusted for the retrospective bias.

SCIENTIFIC ADVICE

Last updated on 6 August 2014

Current advice is to set catches at less then 75% F MSY (SSC, 2011) for FY 2012-2014. Managers have only been recently following scientific advice however.F rebuild is highly circumspect given the uncertainties in the model, and likely lower than estimated (NEFSC, 2013).

Reference Points

Last updated on 06 Aug 2014

Current reference points are based on F msy proxies with rebuilding targets, time-frames, and translation to hard quotas by country and sector (NEFSC, 2013). Biomass target and limit reference points are in use and also based on MSY values.

CURRENT STATUS

Last updated on 5 August 2014

The latest benchmark assessment for Georges Bank Atlantic cod indicates that the stock is overfished and overfishing in occurring. Stock is highly depleted and a very low biomass. Recruitment is very low. Given the lower productivity stock is not likely to rebuild to the limit reference point in the near future (NEFSC, 2013).

Trends

Last updated on 05 Aug 2014

The stock is overfished and overfishing is occurring. Fishingmortality istwice the level sustainable and much higher then what is needed to rebuild the stock.Overall this stock is not expected to rebuild to sustainable levels over the next 20-30 years (NEFSC, 2013).

2.MANAGEMENT QUALITY

MANAGEMENT

Last updated on 6 August 2014

Management of cod from eastern Georges Bank is through a shared agreement between the US and Canada, with this management unit under hard quotas since 2004. US managers have since implemented a catch shares program and other measures to ensure quotas are not exceeded for the entire Georges Bank cod stock.It remains to be seen if these measure will reduce mortality, but they are projected to do so (NEFSC, 2013).

Currently recreational catches are not subject to in-year quotas and as such maybe a contributing factor in over exploitation of this stock.

Recovery Plans

Last updated on 06 Aug 2014

Currently this stock is in a low productivity state due to low biomass, increased natural mortality and overall historical poor management. To achieve rebuilding in any meaningful time frame F rates would have to be as close to zero as possible.Currently management is centered around decreasing fishing mortality to F MSY without any expectation of rebuilding in the short term (NEFSC, 2013).

COMPLIANCE

Last updated on 5 August 2014

Fishermen generally comply with regulations.Trip level reporting is required.Also, a vessel monitoring system (or VMS) is used to track vessels’ location to ensure area management is effective. Recreational catches are a major source of uncertainty in the management process as is discarding until the most recent years (NEFSC, 2013).

3.ENVIRONMENT AND BIODIVERSITY

BYCATCH

ETP Species

Last updated on 5 August 2014

The directedgill net fishery impacts Bottlenose dolphin, Common dolphin, Fin whale, Gray seal, Harbor porpoise, Harbor seal, Harp seal, Hooded seal, Humpback whale, Minke whale, North Atlantic right whale, Risso’s dolphin, White-sided dolphin, and Atlantic Sturgeon as a category 1 fishery (NMFS, 2014). Overall gillnet gear is responsible for over 50% Potential Biological Removal (PBR) level. However, gear modifications (weak links, pingers, and excluders), closed areas, and other management actions are in place to limit and reduce incidents of mortality. The most recent indications (NMFS, 2013) suggest that while target mortality rates for some PET species/stock are being exceeded,these PET populations are still rebuilding. TheBottom Trawl Fishery has little to no impact but is rated as a Category 2 fishery with associated management measures to prevent most interactions.

The incidental fishery is part of the of the NE US multi-species groundfish fishery. Whilemuch of the incidental catch is now retained and counted against the individual species quota, discards in this fishery are still substantial. Both directed and non directed fisheries are subject to closure should these others stock achieve their yearly quota. At-sea monitoring has increased substantial in recent years. Seasonal closures and effort controls are also used to minimize impacts (NEFMC, 2014).

The incidental fishery is part of the of the NE US multi-species groundfish fishery. While bycatch in this fishery is substantial, much of this incidental catch is now retained and counted against the individual species quota. Both directed and non directed fisheries are subject to closure should these others stock achieve their yearly quota. At-sea monitoring has increased substantial in recent years. Seasonal closures are effort controls are also used to minimize impacts (NEFMC, 2014).
Stocks encountered in the fishery include dogfish, haddock, window pane flounder, yellowtail flounder and skate.

HABITAT

Last updated on 5 August 2014

The directed gillnet fishery has little bottom impact with the possible exception of deep-water coral.However managers have recently implemented area closures to protect this vital habitat.
The trawl fishery has some bottom impact, particularly in the areas of hard substrate. However a lengthy management process is currently underway to close very sensitive areas.Seasonal closures, gear modifications, and other management measures are also in place (NEFMC, 2014).

Marine Reserves

Last updated on 05 Aug 2014

Numerous closed area and protected areas are within this region some of which include a completeclosure to all gear types. There is a network of areas closed to all fishing gears through the region, to protect habitats, reduce fishing mortality on juvenile fishes, and to conserve discreet spawning units (NEFMC, 2014) some of these are permanent, others seasonal.

Georges Bank

US W. Georges Bank

United States

Bottom trawls

Last updated on 5 August 2014

The trawl fishery has some bottom impact, particularly in the areas of hard substrate. However a lengthy management process is currently underway to close very sensitive areas.Seasonal closures, gear modifications, and other management measures are also in place (NEFMC, 2014).

Marine Reserves

Last updated on 05 Aug 2014

Numerous closed area and protected areas are within this region. There is a network of areas closed to all fishing gears through the region, to protect habitats, reduce fishing mortality on juvenile fishes, and to conserve discreet spawning units (NEFMC, 2014).

To see data for fishing mortality, please view this site on a desktop.

No data available for recruitment

No data available for recruitment

To see data for management quality, please view this site on a desktop.

To see data for stock status, please view this site on a desktop.

DATA NOTES

Catch and quotas are based on the fishing rather then the calendar year. Terminal estimates of SSB and F are adjusted for retrospective bias. Catch and landings for FY 2012 are preliminary. FY 2013 is not yet available.

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